Pipelines, Pipe Bombs And Protests-- Standing Rock, North Dakota

- by Tracy B. Ann

Last Saturday, security for the Dakota Access pipeline used mace and dogs to attack peaceful Native American protesters from Standing Rock Reservation.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is fighting on many fronts to stop this pipeline from coming so near their land.. Through legal means they are seeking an injunction, through media they are seeking support for advocacy. They are marching in the streets and making their voices heard.

It's a complicated and convoluted story that I can barely begin to comprehend, so let me just lay out the little that I do understand. The application that Energy Transfers Partners submitted to build this pipeline is 800 pages long. I doubt anyone read the whole thing.

"Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners will build, own and operate the proposed $3.78 billion Dakota Access Pipeline and plans to transport up to 570,000 barrels of crude oil fracked from the Bakken oil fields across four states to a market hub in Illinois. The pipeline—already facing widespread opposition by a coalition of farmers, ranchers and environmental groups—will cross 209 rivers, creeks and tributaries, according to Dakota Access, LLC."

Marvin Nelson, state Rep for the 9th district in ND, and a candidate running for Governor, endorsed by Blue America, said it would probably be "hard to find someone who hadn't dropped the ball" in the approval process.

Problems from legal notices not being given, to engineers not consulting the Source Water Protection Program; a regulatory group that is supposed to keep water safe. "They are the ones charged with this task, it shouldn't have to be the public's job."

The route for the pipeline doesn't make sense either. It goes through protected water areas. There were other paths it could have taken that would not have been in protected areas, so why not put it there?

As Marvin said "It doesn't take a historian to know that this part of the Cannonball River area was a Native American burial ground."

This protest has been going on for some time. On Friday, a burial site was found. Legal steps were immediately taken to stop further bulldozing; which should have been stopped long enough for the historical experts to come and investigate. Instead, Saturday morning, the pipeline company stopped working where they had been and skipped ahead 10 to 12 miles to bulldoze the burial site; which is a felony if done knowingly. This is when the protesters moved in to physically block the bulldozers.

Chase Iron Eyes, a candidate for the at-large congressional seat in ND, lives on Standing Rock Reservation. He says: "It's pretty shameful that North Dakota elected leadership isn't doing their part to mediate the greatest tribal event since Wounded Knee. They are not engaging tribal leadership, have set up road blocks, declared states of emergency, and imposed economic sanctions."

Chase Iron Eyes graduated from the University of North Dakota earning a bachelor’s degree in 2000 with a double major in Political Science and Native American Studies. Chase finished his legal training at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 2007.

Having served as in-house counsel to various Tribal Nations in the Northern Plains since gaining admission to the South Dakota Bar, he went into private practice in 2011."

Iron Eyes drives through a road block every day to go to work. The local media is portraying the protesters as armed agitators, some even suggesting they have pipe bombs. The protesters at Standing Rock are very aware of public perception and are determined to protest peacefully.

Chase says "the media and leadership of North Dakota don't seem to be aware of how deeply committed the Standing Rock Sioux tribe is. They aren't going anywhere anytime soon."

Marvin Nelson echoed that. After visiting the camp the protesters have set up, he said, "the protest was totally peaceful and the resolve of the people of Standing Rock was impressive. The current Governor is trying to ignore the Sioux Tribe, but they are not going away."

Seems like this would be a good time to help some of the leadership of North Dakota government go away by helping elect Chase Iron Eyes as the at-large Congressman and Marvin Nelson as the new Governor.

North Dakota Progressive-- A Guest Post By Marvin Nelson, The Only Democrat In America Trying To Win An Open Red Gubernatorial Seat

Sometimes there's no incentive for the party bosses like Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Steve Israel, Ed Rendell and Chuck Schumer to stick their noses into races and these glorified ward healers let Democratic voters pick their own candidates. That's what happened in North Dakota, where Bernie swept the state caucuses and beat Hillary 64.2 to 25.6%, including big wins in Fargo, Grand Forks and Bismarck and winning 13 of the state's 18 delegates. One of Bernie's biggest champions in the state is Marvin Nelson, the progressive Democratic candidate for Governor in North Dakota, he state Representative for the 9th district in the north central part of the state (Rolla, Dunseith, Rolette),. Nelson is a small business owner who is running as a proud Bernie Democrat in this open seat race against a self funding billionaire, Doug Burgum, who very blatantly bought his primary victory over the sitting state Attorney General, Wayne Stenehjem.

I asked Marvin write about what it means to be a progressive in North Dakota, since it isn't something most of us know much about. Below is his guest post. Please consider contributing to his campaign here after you read it.

Moving The Progressive Agenda Forward-- In North Dakota
-by Rep. Marvin Nelson,
candidate, Governor of North Dakota

The fight for progressive thought is woven throughout North Dakota; it goes beyond political party, geography, and demographics. It’s a part of who we are.

For over 100 years, since the Non-Partisan League first formed in North Dakota, the progressive movement has influenced how we think and how we vote.

In 1915, a group of farmers banded together to fight against treatment they received at the hands of business, especially the grain trade, banks and railroads. Together, they formed the Non-Partisan League. In those early days, the movement grew from an agrarian fight to a larger cooperative movement that strove for more equitable capitalism. They built the State Mill and Elevator to regulate the grain trade, and the State Bank, to provide fair access to capital.

Today, we still have these important entities. They have served us well, even in the face of regular attempts to disband them.

Cooperatives can be found everywhere-- you’ll recognize them in the local gas station, the telephone company, and the electric companies. Cooperatives have turned the lights on in North Dakota and have brought our people the essential services we all depend on today.

The Progressive thought of our cooperatives still battles against the corporate interests that continue-- to this day-- to take advantage of people. If we band together once more, we can stop them.

The stories of Alexander McKenzie holding nightly court to control the legislature to favor railroads and grain companies are infamous, and the influence of corporations today through special interests, donors, and lobbyists isn’t that much different. McKenzie was the early political boss of North Dakota, he was successful in getting the capital moved to Bismarck, where he was sheriff, and could control the government. For McKenzie, friendly legislators got the things they wanted. Those who opposed him were pushed aside and ignored. The names have changed, but not much else.

The conflict between the people and the corporations is as pronounced today as it has ever been. The state recently had to cut its budget. Cut were daycare, homemaker services for senior citizens, treatment for opioid addiction, and Medicaid. Not cut were tax credits for real estate developers, for funds to invest in companies having nothing to do with North Dakota, for funding endowments, even new signs at the state capital. In short, poor and disabled were cut, the wealthiest were not. We also have an extremely inadequate worker's compensation system, where severely injured are harassed until they quit and benefits are so low, injured workers cannot support themselves; every worker is at risk of financial disaster.

I am running to be Governor of North Dakota, this is the only Republican-held Governor's seat that is open this election cycle and there is great dissatisfaction with the status quo. My theme is a North Dakota for all North Dakotans. Our reservations are a model of chronic poverty. The legislative majority refused to make it illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation. Anti-Citizen's United legislation got only the minimum attention allowed. Women are still second class citizens.

Together, we must band as one again. We must fight for workers’ rights through union strength-- not the corporate interests masked beneath the crushing "right to work" movement. Let’s raise wages. Let’s fight for equal pay for equal work. Let’s fight for a living wage. Let's fight for paid sick days and paid family and medical leave! Human rights belong to people, not corporations. People should be free to be who they are without fear of discrimination.

Together, let us take on this fight. Let us move the Progressive agenda forward.